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Friday, 6 June 2014

Review: Uninvited (Uninvited #1) by Sophie Jordan

Goodreads Synopsis:

The Scarlett Letter meets Minority Report in bestselling author Sophie Jordan's chilling new novel about a teenage girl who is ostracized when her genetic test proves she's destined to become a murderer.

When Davy Hamilton's tests come back positive
for Homicidal Tendency Syndrome (HTS)-aka the kill gene-she loses everything.
Her boyfriend ditches her, her parents are scared of her, and she can forget
about her bright future at Juilliard. Davy doesn't feel any different, but
genes don't lie. One day she will kill someone.

Only Sean, a fellow HTS carrier, can relate to
her new life. Davy wants to trust him; maybe he's not as dangerous as he seems.
Or maybe Davy is just as deadly.

The first in a two-book series, Uninvited
tackles intriguing questions about free will, identity, and human nature.
Steeped in New York Times bestselling author Sophie Jordan's trademark mix of
gripping action and breathless romance, this suspenseful tale is perfect for
fans of James Patterson, Michelle Hodkin, and Lisa McMann.

Review:

I love dystopian novels and immediately after seeing the
cover it was clear that it was something I might like because how cool is her
hair! Made to look like DNA strands it made all the difference in me actually
picking up the book. But it was the synopsis that had me hooked. I just love
the idea of a “death gene” and was interested where the story could go.

Unfortunately for a dystopian novel the world-building was
very minimum which is a huge no-no. It was easy to get confused about the
situation with the HTS gene outside United States of America borders (Canada
and Mexico, which are brought up multiple times) because it was very briefly
passed over. If it only focused on the United States it would have worked
absolutely fine.

Its focus was more directed towards the lives of people with
HTS, and how they are discriminated against so severely that for some it pushes
them into the path of destruction that they otherwise wouldn’t have followed.
It creates parallels in your head of our own society and was therefore
incredibly interesting and thought provoking to say the least.

On a lighter note the characters if I’m honest were a little
bland. There was little chemistry between Davy and Sean until right towards the
end, so just as you were getting into it the book ended. I was not impressed. But it
leaves room for development in book 2. Davy is a high school prodigy who has
her whole life ripped away after the revelation of her genes and while this
could have been a completely tragic and heart-wrenching moment for the reader
as well, it was too early in the novel so you only connected with her character
once it’s already happened, near halfway through the book.

Sean however is the classic good guy. He’s the quiet and
mysterious boy in the shadows but with a big heart and although it’s the
classic cliché, it doesn’t come across this way and that is the main point that
I praise Jordan’s writing on. He is such a strong character who is determined
to do things his way against what others think is impossible, which is why I
was so desperate for him to make it out okay.

This helped the ending be surprisingly satisfying. The fact
that also wasn’t a cliffhanger proved that not every book has to end on a
cliff-hanger, and thank god for that
because even though it may not sound like it, I did enjoy Uninvited and look
forward to the second book, but since it’s scheduled for early 2015 if it didn’t
have a good ending I would be tearing my hair out right now.

Favourite Quotes:

“All my life people
have called me gifted. Extraordinary. Blessed. I had all these dreams to become
something. Someone. No one ever said I couldn’t. No one ever said Killer.”

“My
imprint is there for the world to see. I don’t try to hide it with my
hair or a high collar. When I got ready for school this morning, I kept
thinking of Sean. How proud he appears. Unapologetic. And I want to be like
that. I don’t want to look cowed or ashamed. I may not want to be this, but I
don’t want to be that girl, either. I don’t want to be afraid.”"A world so afraid of carriers, it makes killers out of the innocent.”"Leaning down, he whispers for my ears alone. "Prove them wrong."

Disclaimer

I can guarantee that all of my reviews are honest, which includes the reviews I have written based on review copies I have received which are clearly specified. The fact that they are review copies has no impact on my thoughts and opinions stated in the review. I do not receive any form of monetary compensation for my reviews from authors/publishers.